In 2025, fire departments serving Fairfax responded to 13 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Carbon monoxide incident lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 85% of all calls.
Jan peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
107 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $65K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 21 | — | |
| 2022 | 34 | +61.9% | |
| 2023 | 16 | -52.9% | |
| 2024 | 23 | +43.8% | |
| 2025 | 13 | -43.5% |
For the 0 building fires Fairfax departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 22 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Other | 3 | 13.6% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 13.6% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 13.6% | |
| 4 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Function area, other | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 18.2% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Fairfax mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 5 | 22.7% | |
| 2 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 4 | 18.2% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 6 | Radiated heat from another fire | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Match | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 4.5% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Fairfax sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,901 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Recreation and ceremony | 547 | 33.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 330 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 80 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2001 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 77 | 46.8 mi | |
| 1994 | Smoking | 75 | 47.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Recreation and ceremony | 60 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Equipment and vehicle use | 55 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 52 | 41.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 51 | 33.5 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 33.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Recreation and ceremony | 50 | 6.1 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 45 | 24.8 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 05454 | 107 |
Six Vermont cities with population within ±25% of Fairfax. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Fairfax.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.